


Boy Talk

by JamieHasCatEyes



Series: Pride [2]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Adrino, Aged up - early to mid 20s, Happy Ending, M/M, Mutual Support, One Shot, adrinino - Freeform, inner conflict, pride month, self discovery
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-02
Updated: 2019-06-02
Packaged: 2020-04-06 10:57:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19061233
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JamieHasCatEyes/pseuds/JamieHasCatEyes
Summary: After talking with their friends in a bar, Adrien and Nino are forced to consider past relationships, where they went wrong, and then face some hard truths about themselves.A companion piece to Girl Talk





	Boy Talk

**Author's Note:**

> Please tell me if I've gotten this right or not. I am but a straight woman very much outside of her comfort zone.  
> Happy Pride month, everyone! I wish you all nothing but the most wonderful happiness <3

‘Sometimes, when it’s just the two of us, Nathaniel and I jerk off together,’ Kim confessed.

‘Dude,’ Nino exclaimed, curling his nose as he set his beer aside. ‘That shit ought to be done in private.’

‘That’s so gay,’ opined Ivan from the other side of the table.

Nathaniel slid lower on his bar stool, his face scarlet. ‘You weren’t supposed to tell people that.’

Kim shrugged. ‘Why not? It’s not like we touch each other or anything.’

Max shook his head. ‘Only you would fail to understand the social norms around modesty, discretion, and privacy.’ 

Setting his own beer aside, Adrien asked, ‘if you aren’t turned on by each other, then what do you think about?’

Kim winked. ‘Who said we weren’t turned on by each other?’

There was a round of scandalised hollering, almost drowning out the music blasting from the pub's sound system. Nathaniel thumped his head against the table, jostling the beer bottles.

‘Sometimes I think about Chloe,’ Kim went on, answering Adrien’s question, ‘and sometimes I think about Ondine. Sometimes, I think about all three of us. Watching Nath just adds a little extra heat, you know?’

‘You’re both gross,’ Ivan rumbled with a disapproving shake of his head.

Adrien held out his hands to prevent an argument. ‘Come on, it’s not that bad is it? Besides, it’s not our place to judge.’

‘I’d still prefer not to hear about it, though.’

Nathaniel nodded, his head covered by his arms. ‘Noted.’

Nino tilted his head back with a groan. ‘I don’t mean to sound like I’m judging, but I don’t want to hear about other people’s relationships, either.’

Kim snickered, and dug an elbow into his ribs. ‘You’re just jealous. You haven’t seen any action since Alya dumped you. Sucks to be you, mate.’

Nino scowled at him. ‘I’ll have you know, it was a mutual decision to split up, and we’ve promised to still be friends.’

‘But not with benefits.’

‘Shut up, Kim. We’re friends, but I haven’t found anyone else I’d like to be in a long-term relationship with, yet. I’ve dated, of course, but no one's caught my attention, that’s all.’

Ivan raised his beer in salute. ‘Good on you. Nothing beats the feeling of a steady relationship.’

‘Says the guy who’s still dating his college sweetheart,’ Max pointed out.

‘So, you know I’m speaking from experience,’ he retorted, with a distinctly superior tone.

Adrien let the conversation flow over him. He’d been involved in a few minor romances, but they had all ended spectacularly. Kagami accused him of emotional distance and reluctance to confide in her. She had left him after a bitter argument merely five months into their relationship. 

Chloe had dated him for a year, but then she claimed he had cheated on her. Adrien had left her after he’d caught her going through his phone. She had screamed at him throughout the hotel, and even onto the street, then she burst into tears, condemning him to a month of bad publicity and vicious rumours.

The dates he’d been on since were negligible, both in terms of numbers, and how they had gone. He'd considered asking Ladybug one more time if she would ever go out with him, but the last time he’d tried that, she had threatened to take his miraculous back.

The conversation gradually wound down, then the bar turned the lights on and the music off. Adrien and his friends winced at the sudden glare, threw back the last of their drinks, and called it a night.

‘You ok, Man?’ asked Nino as he hooked Adrien’s elbow with his own.

Adrien steadied himself and nodded. ‘My foot went to sleep.’

‘You’re not just drunk?’

‘Alas, no.’

Nino patted his back. ‘Come on, I’ll give you a ride home.’

Adrien raised an eyebrow. ‘Are you ok to drive?’

‘Yeah, I only had one beer, and that was over an hour ago. It’s fine.’

Declining any further arguments, Adrien slid into the passenger seat and buckled himself in as Nino circled the car to enter the driver’s seat. He drove cautiously, peering into the gloom ahead, and coming to a gentle stop at red lights. 

‘Actually,’ Adrien said, breaking the silence, ‘I don’t think I want to go home. Can I crash at yours tonight?’

Nino spared him a sympathetic glance. ‘Don’t want to be alone, huh? I get it. Sure, I’ll set up the futon.’

‘Thanks.’

They travelled in silence after that. Still without a word, Nino pulled up at his apartment block, led the way upstairs, and unlocked his door. Once they were inside, Nino pulled out the futon, and went to fetch extra blankets and pillows from his linen closet. Adrien helped him make the bed, then sank down, his hands dangling between his knees.

Nino raised an eyebrow. ‘You sure you’re ok?’

Shrugging, Adrien let his head hang low. ‘Physically, yeah, I guess.’

‘But?’

He shrugged again. ‘I’m tired of being alone, you know? I spent my teenage years alone, I spent the last few months alone. I just. Am I not good enough to be with?’

Nino sat beside him and wrapped his arm tight around Adrien’s shoulders. ‘Of course you are. I know you’ve had rotten luck with the ladies, but it’s not because you’re a bad person. You just haven’t found your right fit yet.’

‘As emotionally stunted as I am, I doubt I ever will.’

He was about to continue his downward spiral, but stopped when Nino placed both hands over his cheeks, and turned his head around until they could look into each other’s eyes.

‘You are good enough,’ Nino told him emphatically, before firmly placing his lips against Adrien’s in a chaste, if awkward, kiss.

When he drew back, Adrien blinked in astonishment. ‘Huh?’

Nino’s complexion turned ruddy, and he looked away, though he still held Adrien’s face. 

‘Did you know Alya and Marinette are dating now?’

Adrien felt his jaw drop and shook his head, still too stunned to talk.

Finally, Nino released his face to allow his hands to rest on his knees. ‘They began going out a month ago. See, the thing is, when Alya told me, it got me thinking. She’s always known she was bi, even if she only told a few people. She was comfortable with that. But I wasn’t like her. I struggled with that part of myself for years. But when she told me she was openly dating Marinette, I thought, fuck it, I want a shot at happiness too, no matter who that’s with.’

Adrien shook off his stupor. ‘Are you saying you like me?’

Nino laughed, though it wasn’t a joyous sound. ‘I’ve been crushing on you hard for years, Man, I just didn’t want to acknowledge it. I mean, you saw how Ivan was tonight. He was so critical, and all Kim did was jack off in front of another dude.’

‘I don’t think Ivan’s that bad a person,’ Adrien told him. ‘I just don’t think he likes hearing about what other people do behind closed doors. You’ve noticed how he never talks about what he does with Mylene, either.’

Nino rubbed his arms and looked away. ‘Still, the way he says it makes me feel like I can’t, I dunno, trust him or something.’

He had nothing to say to that, so Adrien placed his arm over Nino’s shoulders. With his best friend’s revelation, Adrien was forced to confront some things about himself, too. He had never felt like he could open up completely to Kagami or Chloe, just as he could never really give all of himself to Ladybug. But Nino was different. Nino knew about his overbearing father, his crippling anxieties, and would be understanding about his long absences.

Adrien figured where he went wrong with the girls was that he hadn’t warned them about his sudden need to disappear, or his absences late into the night. But Nino knew all that, and had known about his unusual tendencies since they were children. Furthermore, in time, Adrien knew he would be able to confide in Nino about the truth of those reasons, and receive support rather than condemnation or over-protectiveness in return. 

Turning around so that they sat knee to knee, Adrien grasped Nino’s hand. Nino looked at him with a heartbreaking vulnerability in his eyes. Once again, Adrien was forced to acknowledge a part of himself that he had suppressed for far too long.

‘Nino, I would be honoured to be your boyfriend, if you’ll have me. But I may need you to be patient. I’ve never really considered this before, and I don’t exactly know what I’m doing.’

‘You think I know?’ Nino asked through a watery laugh. Still, his hand tightened around Adrien’s. ‘Can I kiss you?’

Adrien leaned in, meeting Nino in the middle for the first of many long, sweet kisses.

**Author's Note:**

> Adrien and Nino enjoyed a long, and loving relationship... once they got over the initial awkwardness. Then they went on double dates with Alya and Mari, just to mess with people >:D


End file.
